Darren: …
He watched as Bullet charged in—only to be blasted away in an instant—and couldn't help the twitch at the corner of his mouth.
Same old reckless idiot.
Around him, pirates who had witnessed the carnage turned sheet white in terror, scattering like frightened insects.
One strike. Just one strike—
And the so-called "Demon Heir" with a bounty of 300 million berries had been blown away, without the chance to so much as resist.
If they had been the target, wouldn't they have been sliced in half on the spot!?
Forget the More-More Fruit!
Even if they somehow managed to snatch it in this chaos, how would they ever make it off this island alive!?
"Jihahahaha!! No one can stop me—the Golden Lion!!"
Having cut down that troublesome pest, the Golden Lion launched himself once more into motion.
He flew low across the battlefield, practically skimming the ground with his domineering charge, headed straight for Darren.
Along the way, countless metal spikes shot from the ground like fanged serpents, trying to ensnare him.
But he slipped through them with ease, cutting those in his path into glittering shards, his pace unbroken.
From afar, he looked like a golden lion soaring across the battlefield—arrogant and unstoppable. The distance between him and Darren vanished in seconds.
In both hands, he gripped the legendary blades Oto and Kogarashi. Their surfaces crackled with black and crimson lightning, trailing twin rivers of thunderous might.
Wrapped in Conqueror's Haki!
In that moment, it was as if the entire island were drenched in raging Conqueror's force. The black-red aura shimmered across the battlefield like a vision of hell.
The Golden Lion's bloodshot eyes radiated pure violence—twisted, feral, like a demon lord from the depths.
"Die, Marine brat!!"
In that instant, Darren felt a crushing pressure roll toward him—a wave so immense it felt like it might smother his lungs.
Every pore on his body flared in alarm.
In that moment—the presence before him was exactly like the one he had faced when first leaving the North Blue…
Roger.
An unstoppable force.
Overwhelming. Absolute.
Only this time, Roger hadn't even gone all out against him.
But the Golden Lion now—his killing intent and fury were at their peak.
Anyone else—any normal person—would have turned and fled.
Even Darren could feel his own muscles, his own cells screaming in warning, telling him to step back.
And yet…
A vicious grin curled across Darren's lips.
A year of harsh training.
Half a year shackled by seastone.
Months of torture and imprisonment under the Beasts Pirates.
Years of sweat, scars, relentless self-discipline…
Countless memories flickered through his mind like a storm of lanterns.
He had come too far to turn back now.
He could give up the More-More Fruit—but this strike, he had to take it head-on.
If he backed down now, if he dodged even once—
He would never move forward again.
"Then come on!!"
Darren let out a thunderous growl and took a step forward—toward the oncoming blow.
His right fist clenched. Armament Haki erupted from his body like a storm of obsidian, wrapping his arm in a jet-black gauntlet.
He punched.
In that moment—his mind became utterly still.
His gaze was fierce, but his chest was calm as still water.
In his pupils, he saw the Golden Lion's wild, grinning face—but deeper within, ripples began to form.
It was like a drop had fallen into a still lake, and from it emerged a warped image—of a broken battleship, drifting at a scrap port.
In Darren's mind, the Golden Lion vanished—
Replaced by that shattered battleship.
His spirit, his strength, his technique—everything fused into one.
It was as if clarity struck like lightning, piercing his soul.
Sengoku, sprinting toward the scene, faltered as he saw the force behind Darren's stance—his desperate, all-in swing. His expression shifted.
"That punch… could it be—"
And then—
Blade and fist collided.
BOOM!!
A dull roar exploded as a shockwave surged outward in all directions.
Black and red lightning crackled across the battlefield, the pressure flattening everything in a hundred-meter radius.
Cannons shattered. Boulders disintegrated. The ground collapsed in a roar of devastation.
"He… he blocked it!?"
King and Charlotte brother's stared wide-eyed, their minds reeling.
The full-force strike of the legendary pirate Shiki the Golden Lion—said to rival even their own captain or mama—had been stopped.
By a Marine commodore.
Crawling from the rubble, Bullet froze—then burst into laughter, blood pouring from his mouth.
"Kahahaha!! I knew it!! You bastard Darren—you're the only one worthy of being my rival!!"
BOOM BOOM BOOM!!
Explosions continued to erupt as the shockwave thundered through the land. Day turned to night.
The Golden Lion looked down, stunned.
That punch—did it just remind him of Garp?
"Did that brat inherit Garp's legacy…?"
But a second later, his savage grin returned.
"That was nothing but a glimpse—even Garp himself couldn't stop me!!"
He rose slightly into the air—then slammed downward with all his might!
Black-red lightning roared again, his Conqueror's Haki crashing down like an avalanche.
CRACK!
Cracks appeared along Darren's arm. The obsidian armor of his Haki splintered.
With a sickening thud, his feet sank into the ground—up to the knees.
The land beneath caved in.
"Jihahahaha!! Now this is power worth talking about!!"
The Golden Lion roared, slashing Darren's wounded arm with a triumphant flick.
Darren's guard dropped.
An opening!!
At that moment, both their eyes glinted red.
Observation Haki.
The blade howled through the air. As one of the world's greatest swordsmen, the Golden Lion's swing was crisp, fast, perfect.
"Die!!"
He struck.
SHHK!!
The blade Kogarashi pierced Darren's chest, splitting flesh and bursting blood across the air.
The world fell silent.
Then—
Sengoku's anguished cry echoed across the island.
"DAAARREEEEN!!"
---
To be continued…